Students gather in Alabama hospital halls to bid farewell to 18-year-old Cheerleader Kimber Mills, who was fatally shot at a bonfire and became an organ donor.
Hundreds of students lined the corridors of an Alabama hospital this week to say a final goodbye to 18-year-old Cheerleader Kimber Mills, who was taken off life support after being shot during a weekend bonfire.
The emotional scene unfolded as Mills was wheeled into surgery for organ donation — a wish she had expressed before her death. Her family and classmates formed an “honor walk,” quietly paying tribute to the high school senior whose life was cut short by gun violence.
Mills was shot in the head and leg early Sunday, October 19, 2025, when a fight erupted at a bonfire gathering in a wooded area of Pinson, north of Birmingham. Authorities say she was caught in crossfire after an unknown man, 27-year-old Steven Tyler Whitehead, opened fire.
According to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Whitehead was arrested later that day and initially charged with three counts of attempted murder after three others were wounded in the shooting. Those charges were upgraded to murder following Mills’ death on Tuesday, October 21, 2025.
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Witnesses told investigators that no one at the event knew Whitehead, who arrived shortly after midnight before the altercation broke out. The motive behind the shooting remains under investigation.
As news of Mills’ passing spread, Cleveland High School, where she was a senior cheerleader, was plunged into mourning. The Blount County School District released a statement describing her as a “bright, outgoing student” whose “infectious personality and smile will always be remembered.”
Her sister, Ashley Mills, said Kimber’s decision to become an organ donor gave others a chance at life even in tragedy. “Her heart was donated to a seven-year-old boy, and her lungs to a woman in New York,” she told The Daily Mail.
Classmates who attended the honor walk said the experience was heartbreaking. “It broke my heart to know someone as bright and kind as her could go through that,” said Marilu Valdez, a close friend. “She always reminded us to love deeply and make every moment count.”
Mills had planned to attend university next year to study nursing — a dream she never got to fulfill, but one her family says will live on through those she helped save.
